Upstate man charged after bomb note found on door

A Boiling Springs homeowner is being charged with arson after a house fire on Hanging Rock Road, where a handwritten sign on the front door of the home warned those responding that there was a bomb inside.

A Boiling Springs homeowner is being charged with arson after a house fire on Hanging Rock Road, where a handwritten sign on the front door of the home warned those responding that there was a bomb inside.

Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Tony Ivey said in a written statement that a driver called 911 about 10 a.m. Monday after seeing the fire at 1480 Hanging Rock Road in Boiling Springs. The driver ran up to the front door of the home to see if anyone was inside and saw the sign, Ivey said.

The Boiling Springs Fire Department and sheriff’s deputies responded to the home. The Hazardous Devices Unit from the sheriff’s office also was dispatched as a precaution. Deputies blocked off a section of Hanging Rock Road around the home, Ivey said.

Once the fire was extinguished, investigators went inside but did not find any device that presented a threat to the community.

“The note may have been placed on the door to impede the prompt response of firefighters in fighting the house fire,” Ivey said. No one was injured, Ivey said.

Late Monday night, Ivey sent a news release stating that the homeowner, Dennis Eugene Swaney, 62, of 1480 Hanging Rock Road, would be charged with third-degree arson. A warrant has been signed, but Swaney is being evaluated at a hospital and the warrant has not yet been served, according to Ivey.

“The sheriff’s office praises the actions of the passing motorist who saw the fire, attempted to